What's in a name?

Not only do I think that a name should sound good but I'm really into what names mean.  There was a reason we choose Gabriella Grace, Braly Andrew, & Morgan Annette for our children's names. We actually had them pretty much picked out before we even had children but they fit them perfectly.

A good friend of mine, Katie Reid, introduced me to The Name Book by Doroty Astoria many years ago and I loved how it was put together.  What's in a name?  Well in this book it first lists the name & possible spellings of the name.  Then it tells the Language/Cultural Origin.  Next is Inherent Meaning (which is the literal meaning of the name). Then the Spiritual Connotation or the implied meaning of the name.  And lastly, a scripture is included to shed light upon the inherent and implied meanings of the name.

When I was a little girl, my Gram & Gramps gave each of us grandchildren a plaque with our name on it, the meaning, as well as a scripture. I still have mine & I believe so do my 3 sisters.  I'd even say that many of my cousins probably still have theirs as well but I don't know for sure. Though mine was not spelled the way I spell my name, I didn't mind because my name still meant the same....God is Gracious or God's Gracious Gift.  From the Christmas or birthday that I received that plaque, I always knew that the meaning of a name was special & could very well be a blessing or encouragement to a person.  Naturally when coming up with names for our children, the meaning has always played a BIG role and this time has not been different.

We thought we were done having children. Though I thought I always wanted 4 children, I had finally come to the place in my life where I was content to have 3 children & love on other people's babies whenever possible. I had given all baby stuff away & saved only one tote full of baby toys for when we would have nieces or nephews or other babies visit us.  I was content with the car we owned & how all 3 car seats fit snug in the backseat. Sure, having more room in a van would be nice but it just wasn't necessary.  And then we were surprised by God with a precious gift.  We waited to tell anyone, even our children for some time.  And before sharing the news with our children, I firmly believe that God had been working on them long before they knew the news.  They made comments that it would be nice to have a real baby in our house to love on & how they wished they had a baby brother to even things out.  Braly would especially pray that we be given a baby brother so he could share his room with someone & play boy stuff with him eventually.

The news was exciting for the kids, especially as they anticipated whether it was a baby brother or sister.  And actually they all prayed it would be a boy and like I shared before, they were upset when we found out it was a girl...though thankfully that only lasted for a night.  As I started looking for a name I was overwhelmed with names. We had a boy name that we had not used but when we found it was a girl, I had to start compiling a list.  Remember how much I love lists.  Though I had what seemed like a hundred names on the list, none of them seemed quite right.  I looked at the credits on tv shows & movies for a name that would just pop & fit...still nothing.   I prayed for God to show us a name that really stuck out & had a wonderful meaning & just like everything else that has had to do with this baby, he answered my prayer.  I was sitting at a stoplight waiting to turn left when a HUGE oversized semi & trailer were approaching  to our right.  I told Morgan to look out her window at the big boat that was going to pass us & that's when I saw the name of the boat. As soon as we got home I grabbed the name book to find out the meaning of the name I had seen because it HIT me & I thought it might be perfect.  When I looked it up I found that it is an English name, meaning Princess and Beautiful. The scripture to go with it is Psalm 45:13 All glorious is the princess within her chamber, her gown is interwoven with gold.  What a lovely name. I mentioned it to Adam & the kids & shared the meaning & they all loved it.


And thus....our baby girl will have the name Sadie.  We have not settled on her middle name yet but it may have the meaning of blessed or blessing, or gift or something of that nature because I feel as though God has been blessing us so much since we found out we'll be welcoming her into our lives & he's been providing the things we need just like his word says. We may decide on her middle name before she is born or we may wait until after she is born to choose her middle name from the list we have going.  Either way, I have no doubt that she will have a button nose just like our other 3 beautiful children & she will be a delight in our lives.  Now we will have Gabby, Braly, Morgie, & Sadie.  Sounds perfect doesn't it?!!! We think so!